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18th Apr 2017

Religious Nuns To Be Given ‘Sole Ownership’ Of New National Maternity Hospital

Sarah

It’s been announced by The Irish Times that ownership of the new €300 million State-funded National Maternity Hospital will be given to a religious order, The Sisters Of Charity.

The very same religious organisation has been historically known for running Magdalene laundries around Ireland, and has so far failed to provide its share of funds for a redress scheme for institutional child abuse victims. 

In 2013 the nuns also stated that they, along with three other organisations who ran Magdelene laundries, would not make any financial contribution to the State redress scheme for women who had been in the laundries.

The Sisters of Charity are shareholders of the new hospital, which is part of St. Vincent’s Healthcare Group and will be built near Elm Park in South Dublin.

The Department of Health have said the nuns will be the “sole owner of the new hospital” and a spokesperson said that “autonomy of the national maternity hospital board will be underpinned by reserved powers.”

People have taken to Twitter to express their outrage at the decision to give the religious order such power in the healthcare of Irish women.

Calls for protests over the proposed religious ownership have been issued. 

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